Starting from scratch...

T

Target Practice

Active member
Okay, so I've been playing games for years, but I've not had the money to be able to fund a gaming rig after my last one caught fire (long story!) so I've been gaming on my Laptop, which despite doing a sterling job, is starting to struggle a bit now.
Thankfully, I've got a bit of money put away, and I can start again - however, it's been a few years since I was last looking at components, so some guidance on performance would be appreciated.

I've got a few goals:
  • The price needs to stay below £900
  • I'd like to be able to play most new releases at medium-high spec for at least a couple of years (barring an unexpected platform-wide jump in system requirements, obviously)
  • I'd like to have the potential to upgrade down the line.
  • It's primarily a gaming rig, but my other half will also be using it occasionally for her graphic design work.
  • The only stuff I have left over from my last PC is a mouse, keyboard and a W7 license.
  • I'll be connecting wirelessly, as unfortunately we only have one phone socket in the house, and I don't fancy drilling through walls/floors etc.

So, if anyone would be kind enough to cast an expert eye across my build and let me know where I could save money, where I've bought more than I need, and where I could get a little more bang for my buck, I'd be hugely appreciative. :)

Thanks in advance!

====================================================================================
Case
COOLERMASTER CM STORM ENFORCER - GAMING ENTHUSIAST CASE
Processor (CPU)
Intel® Core™i5 Quad Core Processor i5-3550 (3.3GHz) 6MB Cache
Motherboard
ASUS® P8Z77-V LX: USB 3.0, SATA 6GBs, ATI®CrossFireX
Memory (RAM)
8GB SAMSUNG DUAL-DDR3 1333MHz (2 X 4GB)
Graphics Card
2GB AMD RADEON™ HD7850 - DVI,HDMI,2 mDP - DX® 11, Eyefinity 4 Capable
Memory - 1st Hard Disk
1TB 3.5" SATA-III 6GB/s HDD 7200RPM 32MB CACHE
1st DVD/BLU-RAY Drive
24x DUAL LAYER DVD WRITER ±R/±RW/RAM
Power Supply
450W Quiet 80 PLUS Dual Rail PSU + 120mm Case Fan (£29)
Processor Cooling
SUPER QUIET 22dBA TRIPLE COPPER HEATPIPE INTEL CPU COOLER (£19)
Sound Card
ONBOARD 6 CHANNEL (5.1) HIGH DEF AUDIO (AS STANDARD)
Network Facilities
WIRELESS 802.11N 300Mbps PCI-E CARD (£16)
USB Options
6 x USB 2.0 PORTS @ BACK PANEL (MIN 2 FRONT PORTS) AS STANDARD
Operating System
NO OPERATING SYSTEM REQUIRED
Office Software
Monitor
IIYAMA E2273HDS 22" LED WIDESCREEN, HDMI/DVI-D 1920x1080 (£129)

Price: £869.00 including VAT and delivery.
 
bigben

bigben

Master Poster
I would swap the HDD for a WD caviar black.
I would also suggest homeplugs instead of wireless.
Finally if you can afford it, I would change the PSU to a Corsair.
Other than that I think it would be ok.
 
C

chrcar59

Silver Level Poster
bigben said:
I would swap the HDD for a WD caviar black.
I would also suggest homeplugs instead of wireless.
Finally if you can afford it, I would change the PSU to a Corsair.
Other than that I think it would be ok.
Click to expand...

Agree with this. I think I'd rather have a 750GB Black than a 1TB Sata III
 
T

Target Practice

Active member
Okay, thanks for that guys. I'll take your advice on the HDD, I've coped fine so far with a 250GB on my Lappy and my 320GB portable, so I can't see 750GB being an issue, and I suppose with the size of today's installs, a decent HDD is more important than ever.

As far as the homeplugs go, is that just a preference thing or are there performance issues I'm not aware of? Because I'm not a pro/competitive gamer and have no intentions of becoming one, and I've managed fine using my Lappy's built-in wireless.
Finally, I think that unless there are serious performance issues that would justify dropping the extra £40 on the corsair, I'm struggling to justify that - anyone know enough to shed some light?

Oh, one other thought occurred to me whilst I was out walking the dog earlier - obviously the 2GB 7850 is a fairly hefty chunk of my build cost - how much would I lose on current games in terms of performance on high/max settings (ie Battlefield 3, ARMA II etc) by dropping that to a 1GB 7770 with a view to purchasing the 7850 maybe 6-12 months down the line?
Basically, I guess I'm asking if the 1GB 7770 is up to running today's games at high/max settings.
 
lady0sheep

lady0sheep

Silver Level Poster
On the homeplugs front, I personally use a wifi card (I bought the duel band one from here). It's been working fine for me playing games.

However.. the only reason I didn't get homeplugs was the lack of plug sockets next to our router as we already have the TV etc there.. and apparently you get a reduction in signal from homeplugs if they're in a multiway/adapter rather than directly connected. If that wasn't a problem for me I'd have probably gone for homeplugs as they give you a wired signal that's faster and probably less variable than wifi. Someone on here told me they'd got about 2 mb/s on wifi then it'd gone up to 40 with homeplugs. It might depend on the wiring quality in your house though. Hope that helps!
 
J

jonnytruckfest

Enthusiast
Just to add if you can afford to upgrade to the 7870 instead of the 7850 I would recommend this as the added performance certainly does help. I manage to play all of the games I have on here so far at max settings and I get a range between 50 - 120 fps! So a definite recommend if you can afford it but I'd stick with the 7850 if you can't as you'll still get great performance out of it :) As for the internet, my wireless is just fine for the odd gaming session....(Just a shame you can't fix the childish idiots that play online ¬¬ )
 
T

Target Practice

Active member
Thanks for the clarification regards the Homeplugs. Generally, wireless signal is pretty good in our house, as the room where the laptop's going is directly above the wireless router, so I don't see signal being an issue.
As for the 7870, as much as I'd love that extra 'oomph', it's almost another £100, and I just can't justify that much above my budget.

Anyone got any further thoughts regarding how essential that Corsair PSU is?
 
bigben

bigben

Master Poster
Target Practice said:
Thanks for the clarification regards the Homeplugs. Generally, wireless signal is pretty good in our house, as the room where the laptop's going is directly above the wireless router, so I don't see signal being an issue.
Click to expand...

Ok, the reason I would suggest homeplugs is because the wifi in my house is lame...

About the PSU, as vanthus said, the bigger psu allows a bit more room for upgrading. Also the corsairs are known for being reliable.
 
T

Target Practice

Active member
Ah, yeah. I thought that might well have been the main reason for suggesting. I think that'll have to be one I tackle down the line - maybe in a couple of years when the time comes to replace the 7850 with something beefier.

Thanks a lot guys, your help's much appreciated. I get paid in a couple of weeks, and then I'll probably take the plunge and get this ordered. :)
 
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